Montana Looking to Buy More Parkland

Flush with the prospect of a surplus in the state budget, Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer wants to spend fifteen million dollars on acquiring land for new parks. The Governor feels that more parkland is needed to keep Montana at the forefront of outdoor tourism destinations, and in turn bring in tourism dollars.

Governor Schweitzer has proposed earmarking $15 million for "the acquisition of new parks and public access sites for hunting and fishing, and a 'Families Fish for Free' program," according to the press release detailing the Governor's 2008-2009 budget proposals. Schweitzer adds that no new money will have to fund his proposed expansion of the state park system, and adds that, "we will not raise taxes - in fact - we are proposing to cut taxes by $150 million." The budget estimates a surplus of $100 million.

Montana is a world-class destination for fly-fishing and game hunting, and Schweitzer wants to continue bringing in tourism dollars, and he feels that expanding the park system is a fiscally sound idea. He told the Associated Press that it is important to spend the money now on buying Montana real estate, as the prices have been going up due to increased interest among the moneyed set in buying land in Montana for vacation homes. Deb Love of the Trust for Public Land sides with Schweitzer. She claims that Montana has seen "incredible growth occurring in the western portion of the state as people choose to live closer to mountains and open space, forests and other amenities." Furthermore, many new owners have not allowed public access to rivers and lakes that are on their land, as ranchers and many long-time Montanans have in the past.

The Montana state park system numbers fifty parks and over 300 public access sites for fishing the blue ribbon trout streams that crisscross the state. Montana drew more than 10 million visitors last year, and boasts two National Parks within its borders as well. Outdoor recreation has become a goldmine for tourist dollars, and to build on the park system will draw more visitors and more dollars. The issue of overcrowding in the state parks could be alleviated with the addition of more land.

Opposition to the proposal mostly comes in the form of concern over staffing the new parks, and finding future funding for more parks. The state already suffers a backlog of infrastructure repair in the park system. However, the new parks do not have to be developed immediately, much like the Rosebud Battlefield site that the state acquired some years ago and are only know working on plans to develop the area into a park. Schweitzer and his supporters feel that it is important to buy land now, before real estate prices make it impossible for the state to affordably acquire the land.

The Director of the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Joe Maurier supports the proposal. He adds that specific parcels of land have not been identified, but the idea is to create two or three new parks and "quite a few" additional public access sites for fishing. Areas that seem to be of interest include the Rocky Mountain Front south of Glacier National Park, and the Alberton Gorge northwest of Missoula.